RIYADH: As part of an ambitious plan to ensure better working conditions for workers, India is negotiating with the Saudi government to fix minimum wages for its hundreds of thousands of blue-collar work force.

Riyadh: Custodian to the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullag is to lead the Kingdom's delegation to the summit of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), which is scheduled to start in Kuwait today.

RIYADH: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah received Crown Prince Sultan, deputy premier and minister of defense and aviation, at the royal terminal of King Khaled International Airport here Friday night amid flag-waving and fanfare. Prince Sultan, who came back to the Kingdom after fully recovering from a prolonged illness, was met at the airport by Prince Naif, second deputy premier and minister of interior, princes and a large number of officials. “A huge number of royal family members and almost all key government officials were present at (the royal terminal),” said Abdulrahman Al-Hazza, deputy minister at the Ministry of Culture and Information.

RIYADH: Second Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior Prince Naif said on Thursday the return of Crown Prince Sultan, deputy premier and minister of defense and aviation, to Riyadh after full recovery from a prolonged illness would be the happiest moment for the Kingdom and its people. The crown prince is due to arrive in Riyadh today. Prince Sultan was convalescing in the Moroccan city of Agadir after undergoing surgery at a New York hospital in February. Despite his illness, the crown prince was keeping himself abreast with the news and developments in the Kingdom, while closely following up on the affairs of the homeland, Prince Naif said.

A $60 billion railway project to connect Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the UAE and eventually Oman will be on the agenda of the summit of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) heads of state.

RIYADH: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah and French President Nicolas Sarkozy agreed on the need to restart Middle East peace talks and discussed Iran’s nuclear program.

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has launched a world-class center for climate change research. The Center of Excellence for Climate Change Research (CECCR) on the campus of King Abdulaziz University (KAU) in Jeddah was established on Monday a few hours before the meeting in Copenhagen at which energy and environment ministers were making pledges for a clean global climate.

RIYADH: The Middle East peace process will top the agenda of talks between Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah and French President Nicolas Sarkozy here on Tuesday. Sarkozy’s visit, though primarily political in nature, coincides with the announcement by Thales, a French firm, that it won a SR168 million contract on Monday to set up a new civil aviation academy in Jeddah. “The visit of the French president is rich in overtones of political diplomacy with Middle East peace process on the top of the agenda besides regional questions like Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan,” said a Western diplomat, adding that Sarkozy would be flying into Riyadh on board a special aircraft with a small delegation.

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia, which leads the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council in terms of ambitious organic farming projects and by setting up a private sector Saudi Organic Farming Association (SOFA), is currently mapping out a comprehensive action plan for the development of organic farming and food. Saudi Minister of Agriculture Fahd Balghunaim, who was elected president of the 10-member SOFA board of directors, said, “The Saudi government has been backing the initiative to promote organic farming with the help of the German technical agency GTZ.

RIYADH: A multimillion dollar new foaming plant, the largest of its kind in the world, has been set up by the Coldstores Group of Saudi Arabia (CGS), a leading company in transport and warehouse refrigeration industry. The new plant is equipped with the latest German technology to ensure production of excellent quality products including the best insulated panels and high-quality multipurpose shelters. “The launch of this new plant is CGS’s next step to increase productivity and to maintain its position as a market leader,” said Esmat Al-Saady, chairman of CGS board of directors, while speaking on the occasion of the unveiling of the plant.

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia will host the Global Competitiveness Forum (GCF) between Jan. 23 to 26, 2010. As many as 100 global figures, including politicians, business leaders, statesmen and company executives have confirmed attendance at the fourth GCF 2010 organized under the patronage of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah.

RIYADH: As part of a regional initiative to step up war on drugs, the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), which includes Saudi Arabia, announced plans here yesterday to set up a major center to combat drug trafficking. This center will help to map out future strategies for checking the drug trade, prevent transactions of dirty money, and foil drug trafficking attempts in the Gulf region. “This regional center, called Gulf Center for Criminal Intelligence, is being set up with the help of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC),” said a statement released by the GCC General Secretariat. The center, it said, “would improve co-operation among the member states by exchange of information on drug trafficking.”

RIYADH: The body of an Indian woman has been stranded for the last 72 hours at King Khaled International Airport (KKIA) in Riyadh on account of a disruption in Air India (AI) flights due to a Riyadh-bound AI plane catching fire in Mumbai on Friday. The Indian carrier, on the other hand, has announced it is paying SR390 (5,000 Indian rupees) to the 229 passengers of the Riyadh-bound plane as a token of support and compensation.

RIYADH: Family members and detainees of the Somaishi Deportation Center here confirmed to Arab News on Monday that Mohammed Saquib, 45, passed away in the center's clinic. Saquib, described by his inmates as mentally challenged and suffering from tuberculosis, was rushed to the deportation center's clinic on Sunday night where he passed away. Arab News reported on Friday that Saquib and another inmate identified only as Siyaram, 60, were in an alarming state of physical and mental deterioration.

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia formally established diplomatic ties with Kosovo following the signing of the protocol accord for diplomatic relations by Khalid A. Al-Nafisee, permanent representative of Saudi Arabia to the United Nations, and Avni Spahiu, Kosovo ambassador to the United States, at the UN office on Friday. A close ally, the Kingdom has also been one of the top donors to Kosovo, which broke away from Serbia and declared its independence in February 2008.

RIYADH: A number of terror suspects including three men whose names figured on the list of 85 suspects released by the Ministry of Interior will soon go on trial in Saudi courts. “These militants, including the three who surrendered themselves before Saudi police recently under pressure from family and friends, are behind bars for plotting attacks against the Kingdom from abroad,” Interior Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Mansour Al-Turki said on Wednesday. “Everybody will be tried in a fair manner,” said Al-Turki, referring to those who are currently in detention facing terrorism charges. Al-Turki declined to say how many of these suspects are currently in Saudi jails.

RIYADH: The case of the Canadian brothers, in which one of the young men has been sentenced to death, has taken a new turn after the victim’s family has allegedly demanded five million dollars as blood money (diyyah). The father of the brothers says the family can only afford SR500,000. “The case has also bounced back again to Jeddah General Court from the Supreme Judicial Council while family members are waiting in despondency to hear the court’s directives in the case,” said Ali Kohail, father of Mohammed Kohail and Sultan Kohail, the two brothers found guilty of a death that occurred in a schoolyard brawl, on Saturday.

RIYADH: The death sentence handed to eight Bangladeshi workers for killing an Egyptian has not been carried out. The Saudi Foreign Ministry has sent no information to the Bangladeshi Embassy. M. Haroonur Rashid, labor counselor at the embassy, said: “The embassy has sent a letter to the ministry seeking information about the workers currently in Malaz Prison after their convictions following a court battle.”

RIYADH: A major solar eclipse lasting for more than six minutes will take place on Wednesday. Zaki Mostafa, a Saudi astronomer said, “Such a spectacular celestial event, the longest total solar eclipse, will not be surpassed again until 2132. It will be invisible in Saudi Arabia but will be visible in China, Pakistan, India, Japan and the South Pacific Ocean.”

RIYADH: Farouk Saad Hamad Al-Zuman, the first Saudi to leave his footprints on the earth’s highest summit, was felicitated at a ceremony held in Riyadh on Tuesday night by the New Zealand Embassy. Al-Zuman — nicknamed “Hillary of Saudi Arabia” after Sir Edmund Hillary, the New Zealander who was the first man to reach the top of Mt. Everest — was commended for the courage and conviction he showed in climbing the mount in May last year.

RIYADH: Capt. Hanadi Zakaria Al-Hindi, the first Saudi woman pilot, hopes to return soon to the cockpit. Employed by Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, chief of the Kingdom Holding Company (KHC), the 29-year-old has been released from a Jeddah hospital following successful abdominal surgery. “The surgery will ensure my medical fitness, God willing,” said Al-Hindi yesterday by phone from Makkah. “I am hopeful that I will soon be flying again.” She thanked Prince Alwaleed for his “kind words, encouragement and support during this period.” Asked about her job at KHC, she said, “I am proud of myself and my family for supporting me, and I’m proud of Prince Alwaleed who has extended all help.”

RIYADH/DHAHRAN: Saudi Aramco and France’s Total said yesterday that they would invest SR36 billion to build the Jubail oil refinery. “The refinery is now expected to be fully operational by the second half of 2013,” said Khalid Al-Falih, chief executive of Saudi Aramco, in a statement. “Today we are marking a major milestone in our partnership with Total, which has been strong historically but is now stronger than ever.” The two companies have set up the joint venture Saudi Aramco Total Refining and Petrochemical Company” (SATORP) to build and operate the refinery.

RIYADH: Prince Naif, second deputy premier and minister of interior, called for greater international efforts to fight terrorism. “The Kingdom has imposed tight restrictions to dry up the resources and funds of terrorists in order to curb the spread of this evil,” said Prince Naif, who renewed his pledge to stop the spread of militancy with the help of the government, the media and members of the public. Prince Naif said “propaganda and yellow journalism” were encouraging Saudi youths to join militant organizations. “The media, whether it is the state media or private, should be realistic and objective,” he said.

RIYADH: A Saudi court has authorized the payment of SR200,000 in blood money to the family of Suryati Bint Dulbari Nurisman, an Indonesian maid in her 20s the authorities say was tortured and beaten to death by a Saudi housewife. “This is a case of brutal murder because Dulbari’s sponsor and his wife have been periodically beating her,” said Wishnu Krisnamurthi, a spokesman of the Indonesian Embassy. Krisnamurthi said he appreciated the role of Saudi officials in Al-Ahsa, Eastern Province, where the housemaid used to work for the family of a Saudi national. (The names of the Saudi and his wife are being withheld as per Arab News policy.)

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has started production from its giant Khurais oil field. The Saudi Aramco’s mega oil project carried out at a cost of SR37 billion will bring more oil on stream than the production of Qatar or Indonesia and will boost the Kingdom’s production capacity from 11.3 million bpd to 12.5 million bpd this year. “The crude capacity of the Khurais field is 1.25 million bpd,” said Ali Al-Naimi, minister of petroleum and mineral resources. This is in addition to the 900,000 bpd Moneefa oil field expansion project that will be completed in 2013, two years later than the initial schedule, but only if global demand for crude warrants,” said the minister in a statement yesterday.